Writing for Performance

Overview

Academic Lead: Professor Martin Welton

Syllabi: SUM504D_Writing_for_Performance [PDF 122KB]

Writing for Performance enables participants to initiate, develop and present a piece of creative writing for performance.  Whether you're interested in playwriting, dramatic monologues, solo live art, verbatim theatre, performance-lectures, or other forms of text-based performance, you will gain new skills through writing workshops, critical discussions of set readings, and group activities. You will be led by an experienced theatre practitioner who will provide expert guidance, intellectual and creative rigour, and a mutually supportive environment in which to enhance your craft as a writer for performance. You will also deepen your skills in initiating, developing, and presenting your writing to an audience.

Course content is subject to change.

Course aims

This course aims to: 

• Provide and enhance your skills in writing for performance
• Develop your writing practice in relation to current developments in professional publishing and performance; and to encourage you to connect your creative writing to socio-political issues
• Enable a supporting and experimental environment in which you will share, workshop, and develop your own writing
• Develop your writing skills through scratch performances and staged readings of your work in progress
• Hone your skills in presenting your writing in a closed event

Teaching and learning

You will be taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, practical workshops and field trips. 

Learning outcomes

You will gain:

• Knowledge of creative writing for performance in a range of traditional and experimental forms
• Develop critical and practical understanding of the structure and form of plays and performance texts
• Identify creative strategies in texts of contemporary performance

You will be able to:

• Develop effective and original methods for creative writing for performance
• Think critically about the value of writing for performance in theatre and beyond
• Identify and respond to topical issues in contemporary culture through writing for performance
• Develop a critical understanding of contemporary writing for performance
• Hone skills to respond critically to creative work produced by peers and others
• Research capacity: work individually and in collaboration with others

Fees

Additional costs

All reading material will be provided online, so it is not necessary to purchase any books.

You will be required to pay your travel costs to and from any field trips.

For course and housing fees visit our finance webpage

Entry requirements

We welcome Summer School students from around the world. We accept a range of qualifications

How to apply

Have a question? Get in touch - one of the team will be happy to help!

Applications close 24 May 2024